The biggest schmogesborg of crazy people, funny stories, awesome experiences, and random events I can remember from the past 6 months.

So I decided as we come to the halfway point in the trip I
would do a little recap of things. This will in no way be exhaustive, only what
I can remember at this moment, but I hope you enjoy and it gives you a little
picture of how things go when you travel the world for 11 months going to a new
country each month,,,

1. if
   someone asks you to go white water rafting in the Philippines I would
   suggest respectfully declining, because chances are good that you will be
   doing less white water rafting, and more sitting in a old canoe while some
   middle aged locals paddle you around complaining about how much you weigh
   and spending over 50% of the time standing in ankle deep water jumping
   from rock to rock pushing the boat… unless you are into that, in which
   case you should go for it.
2. if you
   have an opportunity to go into squatter villages do it. They are some of
   the most welcoming people I have met. They were hungry for the love of
   Jesus, and some of the people we met in month one are still commenting on
   our blogs, even though they have next to nothing and it costs money to use
   the internet,.
3. if you
   are ever on a 30 hour train ride across mainland china try to get a bed in
   the middle of the car unless you enjoy waking up to the sound of every
   asian on the the train hawking their morning phlegm into the sink directly
   opposite your paper thin walls. (ps also try to stay away from anyone named
   Braedon Tabor as those people apparently get train sick and have been
   known to throw up on their bunkmates/teammates)
4. if you
   ever desire to know what famous actors/musicians etc feel like feel free
   to go to a high school in mainland China. No need to get
   permission, just  walk right in and
   the crowds will swarm. If you want to go into a classroom and sing the
   Titanic theme song that is fine, the teacher will most likely leave the
   room because they are embarrassed, and every child will know the words to
   that song, so they will sing along.
5. noodles,
   dumplings. No other food need be mentioned when no one else speaks any
   English, so prepare your stomachs.
6. mountain
   hiking is a fun adventure when up north near Tibet. Don’t forget your black
   asian dress shoes, those seem to be par for the course when enjoying this
   activity.
7. when
   jumping across the pond to head to Africa
   make sure you bring your dull knives, they come in handy when slaughtering
   your own goat for dinner. A little extra sawing, but it gets the job done.
8. no
   need to take any of the meat from the bone when cooking, and if you happen
   to have just big pieces of bone, go ahead and throw that in the pot also.
9. ugali.
   Look it up.
10. bring
    your dancing shoes, African worship is a full body experience, and it will
    change the way you worship the Lord forever, in a good way.
11. if you
    ever hear the words “in fact it is not far” it is a dirty lie. Don’t agree
    to walking that distance unless you like marathons.
12. one
    six passenger bus in Africa = at least 25 people on board. Period.
13. one
    bicycle = at least 3 people and maybe a few live chickens hanging upside
    down from the handle bars.
14. rafting
    the Nile is by far one of the top 3 scariest things I have ever done. As
    we stared into the water at the last rapid we were about to go into,
    affectionately named “the bad place” and I was legitimately trying to
    think of ways I could talk our guide out of going through it you know
    things are bad. We survived and I of course immediately after made fun of
    all the “weenies” that went around it because they were too scared, but
    now you all know the truth.
15. don’t
    stop praying the sick to be healed, we prayed for a man in the hospital
    three days in a row that hadn’t opened his eyes in 6 months, and on the
    third day he opened his eyes! Praise the Lord
16. don’t
    be discouraged if you don’t see immediate results we prayed for hundreds
    of other people who weren’t immediately healed, but I trust the healing
    will come in the Lord’s time.
17. if you
    go visit the Maasai tribe look out for the fresh cow’s milk. It is really
    fresh. Like right out of the cow fresh. Yikes.
18. also,
    if they offer yoghurt I recommend politely saying no thank you, unless you
    like sour milk with a strong hint of smoked sausage, because that is what
    you will get.
19. traditional
    tribal decorations on your arm is cool. Sorry mom =)
20. saying
    goodbye to a sister after 5 months is a very difficult thing to do, but
    knowing that the Lord has called her somewhere else makes is a bit easier.
    Love you Lindsay.
21. putting
    on a bigger coat is also not easy, but nobody wants to wear a coat that
    fits perfectly, then there is no room to grow. (spiritual coat of course)
22. in
    India a head nod up and down means no, and side to side means yes.
23. our
    second day in India during church I saw my first demon manifestation while
    a group of us guys were praying for a man. Not as scary as you would
    think, but definitely proves the legitimacy of spirits in case you were
    unsure.
24. funny
    that the first demon I saw came after leaving Africa where all we heard
    about beforehand was how it was everywhere there.
25. curry
    + my belly = lots of practice on the squatty potty. I am officially a
    professional, although I still contend that it is impossible to get a
    complete number 2 finished when you are in the squatting position… too
    many folds in the belly stopping the free flowing.
26. showing
    in most third world countries consistes of a bucket and some cold water.
    aka showing is optional.
27. shaving
    your beard is also optional, or in my case not shaving is mandatory.